Ansible: Production Configuration Management

Write, review, and architect Ansible automation - from single playbooks to multi-tier, compliance-hardened infrastructure management. The goal is idempotent, auditable, maintainable automation that works the same locally and in CI/CD.

Target versions (July 2026):

• ansible-core 2.21.2 (current stable, Python 3.12+ controller, 3.9+ target, EOL Nov 2027); 2.20.x remains maintained through May 2027
• ansible (community package) 14.2.0 (depends on ansible-core 2.21)
• molecule 26.6.0, ansible-lint 26.6.0, ansible-navigator 26.6.0 (CalVer)
• ansible-builder 3.1.1 (EE definition v3)
• AWX 24.6.1 (last formal release Jul 2024; upstream AWX releases paused for a major refactor, devel branch active - track ansible/awx; awx-operator ~2.19.x still ships for K8s deploys). Verify current AWX/AAP release status before recommending a specific version or install path.
• AAP 2.7 (GA June 3, 2026 - containerized/Operator only; 2.6 was the last RPM-installable release, still patched)

This skill covers four domains depending on context:

• Playbooks - tasks, handlers, variables, conditions, loops, blocks, templates, Jinja2
• Roles & Collections - role structure, collection packaging, Galaxy/Automation Hub, Molecule testing
• Operations - inventory, Execution Environments, CI/CD integration, Vault, ansible-navigator
• Compliance - PCI-DSS 4.0 hardening, CIS benchmarks, Ansible-Lockdown, audit logging

When to use